Port Metro Vancouver is expanding its shore power system for berthed ships from its cruise facilities to cover the Deltaport and Centerm container terminals, president and CEO Robin Silvester announced on 22 July.
The cost of the project, estimated at more than USD11 million, will be split between the port and the Canadian government, he said. The two shore power systems are expected to be operational by March 31, 2017.
Silvester said the expansion “represents another positive step in ongoing work to reduce marine shipping emissions, work that has resulted in significant improvements in Metro Vancouver air quality”.
BC Hydro, of British Columbia, DP World, which operates Centerm, and Global Container Terminals, which manages Deltaport, collaborated in the project.
Shore power reduces emissions by allowing vessels to turn off their diesel engines and draw power from the provincial electrical grid while in port, Silvester said. Vancouver was the first port in Canada to implement shore power for cruise ships and since 2009 over 11,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions have been avoided, he said.
Bringing it to the container terminals will help the port reach targets under the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy, a collaboration with Tacoma and Seattle to reduce emissions in the shared Puget Sound-Georgia Basin airshed, he added. It will also reduce the noise levels for nearby residents.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
